UA apprentice competition showcases rising craft talent

United Association (UA) apprentices from throughout the southeast -- Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Oklahoma and Texas -- came together this summer in New Orleans for the District Three Apprentice Competition, which administers both written and skills tests to apprentices in a variety of craft trades, including welding, pipefitting, sprinkler fitting, HVAC and mechanical service. Winners then go on to compete nationally in Ann Arbor, Michigan, later this year.

After 10 years of overseeing local, state and regional contests, Jim Seay of UA Local 68 in Houston can attest to the competition's rigor and value. "I was just overseeing that two-pipe project. We had about nine contestants, and a lot of them were near perfect," he said. "That means that we're teaching them properly, they know what they're doing, and the test is good. The whole point is we're trying to teach some young people to make better craftsmen."

But in addition to addressing the shortage of skilled craftspeople in the U.S. industrial market, the UA's apprenticeship programs also provide good-paying jobs and promising careers to people who need them most, like young veterans returning from combat overseas.

After serving in the Marines for eight years, former sergeant Brandon Harwood said he was in "freak-out mode" until he stumbled upon the UA's Veterans in Piping (VIP) program. "The Marine Corps Community Services does a lot to give back to Marines, and they had it on their website as 'VIP welding program,'" he explained. "I had done some welding prior to going into the Marine Corps, so I thought, 'OK, I'm going to give this a try.' I went and talked to the instructors, and they told me about all the benefits available. If you're willing to work hard and apply yourself, you can't beat it."

All the UA's training and testing programs are funded through hourly contributions built into other union workers' contracts with their employers, which allows the organization to provide them free of charge to apprentices. The UA also has articulation agreements with several colleges across the country, so trainees can often receive college credit at the same time as earning their trade certifications.

"It's just a great program," former Marine corporal Dustin Allen said of the training that enabled him to qualify for the UA District Three competition. "I would recommend it to anyone."